The Empress of Time (The Keeper of Night, #2)
Kylie Lee Baker
Half British Reaper, half Japanese Shinigami Ren Scarborough is no longer the girl who was chased out of England—she is the Goddess of Death ruling Japan’s underworld. But her problems have never been greater. Her Shinigami see her as a foreigner on the throne. Her brother, Neven, is gone, lost in the deep darkness. And her fiancé, Hiro, has been killed by her own hand. Then Ren receives the most troubling news yet—Reapers have been spotted in Japan, and it’s only a matter of time before Ivy, now Britain’s Death Goddess, comes to claim her revenge. Ren’s last hope is to appeal to the god of storms and seas, who can turn the tides to send Ivy’s ship away from Japan’s shores. But he’ll help Ren only if she finds a sword lost thousands of years ago—an impossible demand. Together with the moon god Tsukuyomi, who shares an uncanny resemblance to his brother Hiro, Ren ventures across the country in a race against time. As her journey thrusts her into the middle of scheming gods and dangerous Yokai demons, Ren will have to learn who she can truly trust—and the fate of Japan hangs in the balance.
Publication Year: 2022
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0Disclaimer: I received a complimentary ALC in exchange for an honest review. This did not affect my rating.
Content warnings: Violence, gore, bullying, racism
In this exciting sequel, Ren is back ten years later, still facing the decisions she’s made up to this point. She’s now the Goddess of Death, which comes with its own set of difficulties. The Shinigami under her rule don’t want to accept her as ruler as they see her as a foreigner. She’s also been devouring human souls in hopes of becoming strong enough to bring her brother back. But things get really messy when Ren finds out Ivy, who is now Britain’s Death Goddess, intends to take revenge.
I’ve been so excited for this book to come out ever since reading The Keeper of Night last year! I’m so happy that this book exceeded my expectations. Ren was already morally grey in the last book, but in this one she becomes almost evil. I loved seeing how she changed over the two books and what she learned about herself.
This book also had such beautiful writing that further drew me into the story. I suspect I’ll reread sometime in the future, but I’m also super excited to read what Kylie Lee Baker writes next!
Audiobook note: The narrator, Rebecca Yeo, did an excellent job bringing Ren and this story to life!
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This was such a satisfying ending to The Keeper of Night Duology. I’m rarely as impressed by sequels, but I loved this one just as much as the first. Once again I was a big fan of the setting, the atmosphere and the writing style. Kylie Lee Baker has a way of crafting the most lyrical sentences that make you stop and appreciate how beautiful it sounds.
The biggest stand out to me was the relationship between the two siblings as they were pulled into another round of literally fighting against the clock. Ren and Neven mean the world to me with their “it’s the two of us against the world” dynamic, and I really appreciated how big of a focus their bond was has been throughout both books.
This is definitely going on my list of historical fantasy series I will always recommend.
[3.75 stars]
Thank you to Netgalley and Harlequin Australia for providing me with this arc
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